eNewsletter | April Edition
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In this month's edition:
- The Near Demise of the Monarch Butterfly
- CAL FIRE Fuels Reduction Guide
- Global Volunteer Month: recognizing our Board of Directors
- Earth Day 2021 actions to save water
- April 19: Farming During Drought in Sonoma County
- County chipper program taking applications!
- "It's A Dry Year" message from Sonoma Water and more ways to get connected
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The Near Demise of the Monarch Butterfly and What we Can Do to Save It
This article from the March 2021 Sonoma-Marin Farm News / Article by Dave Sherwood and Michelle Katuna
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Marin, Sonoma, and Gold Ridge RCDs have all been working on efforts to support monarchs and pollinators. There were more than 4 million western monarchs counted at overwintering sites along the California coast, including sites in Marin and Sonoma, in the early ’80s; a count which declined steadily to 200,000 in 2017, then to 29,000 in 2019. Last year’s coastal California count for the western monarch came in at a dismal 1,900. The radical decline in the national monarch population has recently been recognized by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service which found that “adding the monarch butterfly to the list of threatened and endangered species is warranted but precluded by work on higher priority listing actions”. With this decision, the monarch becomes a candidate for listing under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and its status will be revisited. Read about ongoing RCD efforts and what you can do to help Monarch populations in the article here.
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NEW Fuels Reduction Guide from CAL FIRE |
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"Fire is an essential ecological process in fire-dependent ecosystems, such as California wildlands. However, over a century of fire suppression has led to wildlands, woodlands and rangelands that are unable to withstand normal droughts, insect outbreaks or wildfires. The purpose of any fuels reduction project is to change the size and composition of the fuels in the forest, creating a break in fuel continuity. Doing so removes ladder fuels which can carry fire from the forest floor to the tree crowns where it can become a devastating fire that quickly spreads. The goal of fuels reduction is to create conditions that mimic the role of low intensity fire or other disturbances that once naturally thinned the forest." Check out this newly released interactive guidebook online, click on the image to read and download the full PDF online. The RCD is a proud partner of CAL FIRE and supporting forest resilience in Sonoma County. |
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Recognizing our Board Volunteers |
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The RCD could not exist without our dedicated Board of Directors. So, since April is Global Volunteer Month we'd like to take this opportunity to recognize their contributions to not only the RCD's internal functioning, but to supporting conservation in Sonoma County for our community as a whole.
Bruce Abelli-Amen, Board Chairman | John J. Nagle, Vice Chairman | Walter Ryan, Director | Vickie Mulas, Director | Ron Rolleri, Director | Jennifer Kuszmar, Director | Ariana Reguzzoni, Director | Dennis Murphy, Associate Director | Beth Bruzzone, Associate Director | Earle W. Cummings, Director Emeritus | Delmar Friedrichsen, Director Emeritus
Our Directors are local residents and are actively engaged with rural, agricultural, and natural resource conservation issues and businesses. Thank you for your time, energy and dedication to the RCD's mission and vision to serve our community today, tomorrow and for years to come. Check out our Board and Staff page to read their bios! #GlobalVolunteerMonth
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This year's Earth Day theme is Restore Our Earth™ and the RCD is celebrating over seven decades of stewardship, conservation and community building to care for our diverse landscapes and treasured natural resources. Like some say in the RCD world, "from the Dust Bowl to climate change today," the districts across California address our communities most pressing natural resource concerns. As we face a severe drought year and a worrisome fire season ahead, we wanted to focus on sharing a few ways you can conserve water and help protect the watersheds that make Sonoma County so stunningly unique. For more information on our services and resources available to you to help Restore Our Earth™ please visit our website or contact us at info@sonomarcd.org.
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Sonoma County Forest Conservation Working Group |
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The Sonoma County Forest Working Group (FWG) is a robust network of forest landowners, land managers, foresters, land trusts, watershed councils, non-profits, government agencies, researchers and educators. Now organized by Gold Ridge RCD staff, the group brings together forestry and conservation expertise to provide education and resources to forest landowners with the goal of protecting and sustaining healthy forests, woodlands, and watersheds in Sonoma County. Sonoma RCD staff have participated since the group's inception and currently our Registered Professional Forester sits as a key member. Any forest landowner can join the Forest Working Group. It is meant to be an open-access resource to all. Check it out!
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Storytelling project from Fire Safe Sonoma |
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Have you been impacted by Sonoma County wildfires in the past four years? Fire Safe Sonoma (FSS) is gathering stories from Sonoma County residents who are willing to share their personal experiences navigating recent catastrophic wildfires. If you are a Sonoma County resident who has been critically impacted by wildfire in the past four years, FSS wants to hear from you. To share your story, please contact firesafesonomastaff@gmail.com and put “Storytelling Project” in the subject line. *In your message, please indicate whether or not you had to evacuate.
These conversations can be difficult, but Fire Safe Sonoma is here for you! The purpose of this project is to shed light on local experiences, build community resilience, and inspire wildfire readiness in preparation for the 2021 wildfire season.
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Virtual Workshops | Resources |
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April 19: Farming During Drought in Sonoma County |
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With 40% average precipitation and reservoirs at half capacity, North Bay farmers and ranchers (like much of California) are bracing for another dry year, if not full-scale drought. Join the CAFF Sonoma County chapter and the Sonoma RCD for this month's Farmers Guild gathering to explore "farming during drought", from practical tips on water conservation and farm adaption to government response and recovery resources. Hear from the experts and share your own experiences growing under dry conditions. Whether it's getting through the summer or entirely re-thinking California's agricultural norms, the time to get water smart is now. We hope you'll join us from 6:30 -8:00pm virtually!
SPEAKERS:
- Keith Abeles, Soil & Water Specialist at Sonoma Resource Conservation District (RCD)
- Elliot Marshall, Irrigation Manager at New Family Farm
- Sara Tiffany, Ecological Farming Director, CAFF
- Brittany Jensen, Gold Ridge RCD
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This free event is sponsored by CAFF and the Sonoma Resource Conservation District. |
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CDFA Drought Resources web page now live |
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CDFA’s Drought Resources web page stands as a valuable tool for farmers and ranchers seeking information about drought assistance programs.
The page features links to the USDA’s Farm Services Agency and contact information for other USDA offices that could be of assistance to farmers and ranchers harmed by the drought. Information will be added and updated as it becomes available.
On March 5, 2021 USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack declared California’s 58 counties as a primary natural disaster area due to recent drought. This Secretarial disaster declaration allows for farm operations in impacted counties to be eligible for certain assistance available through the USDA Farm Service Agency.
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Recordings available: 4th annual Soil Health Symposium |
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Last month, the North Coast Soil Health Hub virtually host the 4th Annual Soil Health Symposium on March 11th and 12th, 2021. This year’s Soil Health Symposium brought together growers, land and vineyard managers, scientists, agency representatives, and others to provide an overview of soil health in our North Coast region. Topics included potential climate change impacts and solutions, cutting-edge soil health practices, and the latest data from the field. If you couldn't make the symposium last week, don't worry! You can now view Day 1 and Day 2 recordings at the North Coast Soil Hub website soilhub.org Click here to view the speaker list and read speaker bios.
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County Chipper Program now taking applications!
Shared from Gold Ridge RCD
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The County of Sonoma Roadside Chipper program opened for applications March 1, 2021. The County of Sonoma Roadside Chipper Program was implemented in 2014 and has supported hundreds of county residents in creating defensible space around their homes. Since the program’s inception, there has been an increase in the use of the program by county residents working towards increased fire safety. Last year, the free roadside chipper program started on May 4, 2020 and continued to operate based on available budget, which is driven by community demand for the service. The program operates on a “first come, first served" basis.
In September 2020, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors allocated additional one-time funds to the annual chipper budget to increase program capacity. To date, 933 jobs have been completed. The program will start operating again on March 1, 2021. For further information and to sign up for the program, visit the program webpage here.
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It's a Dry Year.
Shared from Sonoma Water
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As a region we are experiencing a second dry year, and rainfall and water storage are well below average for this time of year. Sonoma Water and its partners in the Sonoma Marin Saving Water Partnership (SMSWP) encourage all of our 600,000 drinking water customers to continue to save water.
Our region just experienced the third driest water year (October 2019 - September 2020) on record over the last 127 years. We all need to make changes to our everyday habits to eliminate water waste and preserve water supply. Every drop saved helps maintain water flows in the Russian River and extend reservoir storage levels should the current dry period continue.
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La Increíble Migración del Salmon
Shared from Sonoma Water
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La Increíble Migración del Salmon con Sonoma Water
12 de abril, 5pm-6:30pm
paseo virtual via Zoom
LandPaths los invita a reunirse con nosotros y el personal de Sonoma Water para una charla divertida acerca de la increíble migración del salmon en la cuenca del Río Ruso. De una manera divertida aprenderemos sobre la cuenca de agua del Rio Ruso, su importancia, los salmones y su ciclo de vida. También aprenderemos acerca de los esfuerzos de conservación y manejo de salmones de Sonoma Water. Tendremos la oportunidad de hacer preguntas y aprender directamente de los especialistas. Este evento se llevará a cabo en español via la aplicación de Zoom. Todas las edades son bienvenidas.
Para inscribirse, favor siga el enlace o déjenos un mensaje en los comentarios. También pueden contactar a Guadalupe por correo electrónico, guadalupe@landpaths.org.
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